A little less known but even so a Chicago blues monument is Billy Boy Arnold. He even learned how to play harmonica from Sonny Boy Williamson I in the streets of Chicago, in the forties (as a kid). On those same streets, he als played with Bo Diddley, blowing the harp on ‘I'm A Man’ (which he still wasn't in those days). A deal with Vee-Jay gave him some hits like ‘I Wish You Would’ and ‘I Ain't Got You’, later covered by the Yardbirds with Eric Clapton (well, they tried...). Billy had some sporadic opportunities to record as a leader from the 60's through the 80's, but a deal with Alligator in the 90's boosted his visibility to its highest level for forty years. He made one of his greatest recordings in 1977 for the British Red Lightnin' label. The album Checkin' It Out was recorded in two days only with (a.o.) Tony McPhee from The Groundhogs. The track Dirty Mother F*cker sounds as dirty as you read it here. By the way: his brother Jerome Arnold played bass with the Paul Butterfield Blues Band. More about them later. Billy's Alligator recordings are nice, but I prefer the dirty sound of the Red Lightnin' recordings, if possible on vinyl. Well, here's the list for your shelf:

Crying and Pleading - Charly - 1980/1994
Checkin' It Out - Red Lightnin' - 1979 (with Dirty Mother F*cker!)
Back Where I Belong - Alligator - 1992
Eldorado Cadillac - Alligator – 1996

Video: Billy Boy Arnold & The Blasters - I Ain't Got You

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